W. Hoops' lead overturned by late Lafayette comeback

The Penn women's basketball team squandered an 11-point second-half lead to fall to 3-10. Winning on the road is a prime attribute of a competitive team. Going into yesterday's game, the Penn women's basketball team (3-10) had achieved all three of its victories away from the Palestra. Against Lafayette (3-13), however, the Quakers were unable to hold on to a 36-28 halftime edge as they fell 81-69 at the A.P. Kirby Field House in Easton, Pa. Poor free throw shooting in the final 10 minutes of the game, combined with some key misses by normally reliable scorer Mandy West, led to Penn's demise. Co-captain West and sophomore Diana Caramanico led the Quakers in scoring with 20 and 24 points respectively. But with less than a minute to play and Penn trailing 75-69, West missed three jumpers in a crucial 12-second span. When Penn's Claire Cavanaugh was whistled for a foul after West's final miss with 40 seconds remaining, the Quakers' chances at redemption were finally deflated. Lafayette dominated the inside game. Led by forward Christel Rocha, who paced the Leopards with 24 points, the Leopards outscored the Quakers 50-24 in the paint. Rocha was also impressive at the line, nailing 9-of-10 free throws. In contrast, the Red and Blue shot 9-for-17 from the line. West seemed to have her rhythm in the first half as she swished a three with half a minute left to give Penn a 36-25 lead. Lafayette center Alicia Yapsuga, however, cut into the lead as she converted a three-point play after hitting a layup and being fouled by Sue Van Stone. The half ended with Penn holding on to a 36-28 lead. But the second half was all Lafayette. The Quakers were outscored 53-33 in a dismal second half that saw them hand over a contest in which they committed 24 turnovers. With 13 minutes to go, Lafayette cut the Penn lead to three points at 49-46, but the Quakers managed to hold off the Leopards surge for the time being. With 10 minutes remaining, Penn still held a five-point advantage. But another Lafayette surge -- culminating with a Sara Harris steal and a pair of Rocha free throws -- tied the game at 58 with 8:42 left. Caramanico then answered with a clutch jumper to reclaim the lead for the Quakers, but it was to be their last lead of the night. Lafayette went on a 12-1 run -- in which the Quakers went 0-for-5 from the line and 0-for-4 from the field -- that ended with a 70-61 Leopards lead. West cut the lead to 75-69 with a minute to go, but Penn never got any closer. As a relatively young squad, the Quakers should easily rebound from this tough road loss. But as a middle-of-the-pack team in a league separated by narrow margins, road wins are key to building the confidence that Penn (1-2 Ivy League) will need in its season-ending, 11-game Ivy stint which begins on January 29.